Research shows that girls' identities can get too wrapped up in sports, said Marlene Holmes, a mental health advocate, sports social worker and regional director at Netball America.

Girls also grapple with low self-confidence and challenges visualizing themselves as being successful and leaders in their community.

The Netball American program teaches middle school girls and boys netball as a vehicle for improving their communication and teamwork skills and boosting their self confidence.

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Sabrina Yavil, sports mom to three boys and founder of Gryme, struggled with encouraging her kids to clean up after practices and games. What's more, the boys didn't seem to want to put time into practicing for games.

She began asking them to make their beds and put away their dishes in the morning and take showers after practices or games. She asked them to take more responsibility for getting their sports gear together before games.

The result, she said: As they became more disciplined and responsible, their confidence grew in and out of sports.

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The human brain tends to lean toward negativity.

It doesn't understand the difference between protecting us from a snake or lion and protecting us from emotional states, said Debbie O'Connell, president, Live Positive and Golf Positive.

She provides three tips to help sports kids overcome negativity, including changing their posture.

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Without grit and discipline, young athletes won't be successful, said Cary Knox, retired head coach and author of "I Believe," which explores the legacies of Illinois Sports Legends.

We live in a selfish society, and kids who lack discipline are being selfish because they're not good teammates, he said.

He provides examples of grit and discipline on one of his teams. The players struggled for two years, then made a comeback.

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Adolescent runners are still growing, and it's critical to support their growth with nutrition that supports their brain and bone health, said Michele Pettinger, author of The Young Runners' Guide to Nutrition.

She provides nutrition tips for parents of runners, and also touches on how runners struggle with body image challenges.

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Young athletes often stop enjoying sports because they're perfectionists, compare themselves to others or "mind read," or make assumptions about what others are thinking, according to Jaclyn Ellis, a mental performance coach at Peak Performance Sports.

She explains how she helps sports kids overcome these challenges and begin enjoying sports more.

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The emotional, social, physical and academic benefits of youth sports are well documented. But the rising costs of participating are undermining young athletes' access to sports and its benefits.

That's the message from Christy Keswick, president and co-founder of the nonprofit Good Sports. She shares the results of a Harris Poll that found 90% of sports parents polled understand the benefits of sports, but 75% are considering withdrawing their kids from sports because of high costs.

She explains what's driving up costs and how parents can work to provide less expensive programs in schools and recreational leagues.

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Young athletes lack competitiveness in sports in part because they compare themselves to others, when they need to focus on their own strengths. They also overthink and focus on negative "what if" statements.

Georgia Miller, a mental performance coach with PeakSports.com, explains the mental game issues that contribute to lack of competitiveness and how to overcome the challenges.

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